his by the way announcement reads, a son to mr. and mrs. hutton gibson of verplank. that's this small river town in upstate new york where the family lived for a few years in this modest home. it still stands just down the road from the catholic congregation of st. patrick where mel's father sang in the choir. gibson was the sixth child in a brood of 11. >> his older brothers and sisters -- >> reporter: writer lawrence got a look at his strict upbringing in an interview with the actor. >> one day the father got so fed up that he grabbed the two of them and knocked their heads together. >> reporter: they're lucky they didn't have to go to the hospital. >> exactly. but mel believes his father had wisdom doing this to his kids. >> reporter: mel's father hutton rooled the roost. a conserves ive cast li s iquef